A man stands in the doorway of his room at the Thunderbird Motel next door to where fugitive Ryan Jenkins was found dead, in room number two, in Hope, British Columbia, Sunday Aug. 23, 2009. RCMP say fugitive murder suspect Ryan Jenkins was found dead of an apparent suicide in a motel in the town of Hope about 90 minutes east of Vancouver.(AP Photo/THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck) less

A man stands in the doorway of his room at the Thunderbird Motel next door to where fugitive Ryan Jenkins was found dead, in room number two, in Hope, British Columbia, Sunday Aug. 23, 2009. RCMP say fugitive ... more

Photo: Darryl Dyck, AP

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This image provided by the Los Angeles Police Department shows Jasmine Fiore, who has been identified as the woman whose body was found stuffed inside a suitcase and placed in a dumpster and discovered Aug. 15, 2009. Police said Ryan Alexander Jenkins, 32, a reality TV personality, is a "person of interest" in her death. (AP Photo/Los Angeles Police Department) less

This image provided by the Los Angeles Police Department shows Jasmine Fiore, who has been identified as the woman whose body was found stuffed inside a suitcase and placed in a dumpster and discovered Aug. 15, ... more

Photo: AP

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Slaying suspect Jenkins' life an illusion

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Like so many things in Hollywood, Ryan Jenkins' life was not as it seemed.

The wealthy and handsome son of a well-known Canadian architect had recently finished taping appearances on two reality shows when he checked into a luxury oceanside hotel on Aug. 13 in sun-splashed San Diego with a former model in tow.

Less than 48 hours later, the woman was dead and Jenkins had gone from a sweet-talking, suave contestant on VH1's "Megan Wants a Millionaire" to the prime suspect in a gruesome - and mysterious - murder.

The saga culminated Sunday when Jenkins was found dead of a suicide, hanging by a belt from a coat rack in a run-down Canadian motel. Now authorities on both sides of the border are scrambling to answer questions about the murder of Jasmine Fiore and learn the details of Jenkins' last days.

Authorities have still not recovered Fiore's car, a white Mercedes-Benz, and they believe it could be the place where Jenkins killed Fiore or where he mutilated her, cutting off her fingers and pulling out her teeth.

"We're trying to determine if that vehicle was the crime scene, if it transported the body or if it was where the murder occurred," said Buena Park police Sgt. William Kohanek. "We're not able to just exclude anyone else from being involved. We're just not able to say that yet."

Jenkins and Fiore met in Las Vegas in March, shortly after Jenkins finished taping for "Megan Wants a Millionaire," and they married on March 18, according to court documents. The couple separated shortly afterward, but had reportedly reconciled.

The relationship was stormy. Court records show Jenkins had been charged recently with hitting Fiore in the arm. In his hometown of Calgary, Alberta, Jenkins was sentenced to 15 months probation in January 2007 for assaulting a girlfriend.

Despite their troubles, Jenkins and Fiore were trying to make it work as recently as two weeks ago. They went to San Diego together and checked into a picturesque oceanside resort.

Two days later, Fiore's nude body was found stuffed in a blood-stained suitcase thrown into a Buena Park trash bin. Her fingers and teeth had been removed - presumably to prevent identification of her - and police learned her name by tracking the serial number on her breast implants.

Soon the 32-year-old real estate executive was making his escape to his native Canada, eluding authorities from two countries in 1,000-mile dash by car and speedboat to the Canadian border.

On Thursday, the same day authorities held a news conference announcing charges against him, a woman checked Jenkins into the Thunderbird Motel in Hope, British Columbia, as he waited in a car with tinted windows.

Motel manager Kevin Walker said the woman paid cash - the equivalent of $130 U.S. - for three nights' stay. Walker said he never saw the woman or the car again.

When the couple didn't check out, Walker unlocked the room and found Jenkins dead.

Police said Monday they have identified the woman and are investigating whether she will face charges for helping him. Her name was not released and she is not in police custody, said Sgt. Duncan Pound of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. He said the two had a history together.